41 new COLE Leadership Fellows are wide awake and ready for a full day of training, after being inspired by Professor Joe LeBoeuf.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of just going through the motions as an MBA student and making it a very “transactional” period in our lives. In retrospect, I have made the mistake of simply attending class, participating sporadically in a few extracurricular events, and thinking casually, if at all, about trying to develop my leadership skills while giving back to Fuqua. After speaking with Professor Joe LeBoeuf, head of Fuqua’s Leadership Development Program, I realized how ambivalent my attitude had been toward my overall development, and was inspired to write my previous blog post on leadership.

Through our Consequential Leadership (C-Lead) classes with Prof. LeBoeuf, my classmates and I have had several opportunities to assess our current leadership skills and determine which areas need improvement, but introspection quickly gets pushed to the side when accounting or finance assignments are due. Last August, I thought I’d have plenty of time to discern what I needed to do to become a more effective leader and well-rounded person, but earlier this year, I felt like I was already severely behind the curve. Luckily, there was time during the spring terms for me to raise my hand and take ownership of clubs and organizations to which I can contribute most.

Taking Steps to Become a Leader of Consequence

My resolution for this year was to decide how I can make Fuqua a better place by committing my time and abilities to organizations that I am passionate about. For starters, I volunteered to become Co-Chair of Fuqua’s Leading Women Organization, which is a new joint initiative between the MBA Association and Student Life Office, dedicated to fostering connections among women leaders on campus. I have only been “in charge” for a few months, and I already appreciate the amount of time and effort leading a club requires! I’ve hosted several events this spring, and while the planning portion is getting a little easier, I always get nervous that something will go wrong on the big day! Luckily, I have a great Co-Chair and the support of Fuqua staff, which has helped me to learn that I don’t have to do everything by myself — a lesson in leadership that is crucial to success.

Students navigate through a "minefield" at COLE Fellows training.

Another step I’m taking in fulfilling my resolution is becoming a COLE Leadership Fellow — we are students who are chosen to work with the Fuqua/Coach K Center on Leadership and Ethics, and we are guided by Prof. LeBoeuf to help shape leadership development for other Daytime MBA students. When I first arrived at Fuqua, I didn’t have the slightest bit of interest in becoming a COLE Fellow. It seemed like a large time commitment, and it’s unpaid!

COLE Fellows are all second-year students, and I didn’t think that they would be able to help me become a better leader — I had been in the Navy, after all. But, like it or not, my first-year C-Lead team was assigned to a COLE Fellow, Dionne, and luckily, I had a wonderful experience with her. I understood that she wasn’t just there to help me develop my leadership skills, but to ensure that I was taking enough time to think about my personal happiness and whether I was actually transforming into the person who I want to be.

It isn’t easy to corral a team of 6 people together to talk about their feelings, stress levels, and any other issues they may be facing, but that is exactly what being a COLE Fellow is about. It is also about giving people an outlet for their concerns or frustrations during a hectic time in their lives, which is a necessary skill not only at Fuqua, but in the real world as well.

COLE Fellows are the backbone of Fuqua’s leadership program because they are the impetus behind so many leadership opportunities for students, like the Leadership Cohort Experience and BOLD. I want to be a part of an organization whose sole mission is to promote leadership within our community while also maximizing cohesion within C-Lead teams, which is exactly what I would be able to do as a COLE Fellow, so wish me luck as I work on my leadership style this summer, in anticipation of meeting my C-Lead teams in September!

Matt Ganderson hands RJ Fox a board to help him reach an “island.” The team building exercise was part of COLE Fellows training.

I am lucky that I was able to personally speak with Prof. LeBoeuf before the end of my first year, because I gained insights into the disparity between what I wanted out of Fuqua and what I was actually doing at Fuqua. During the next year, I will actively seek out leadership roles, both formal and informal, within the Fuqua and Duke community in order to give back to a school that has given me so much already, and to position myself successfully in the real world. And hopefully, I’ll have time for a round or two of golf at the WaDuke (Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club)!

With my friend Kara at the top of the mountain before tackling a serious blue (or green) run.

During the second week of Spring Break (yes, we get two weeks off, which is another thing I LOVE about this school!), 40 first-year and second-year students travelled to Park City, Utah, for an annual ski trip. The best thing about the trip was that you were completely in control of how much or, like me, how little you skied. Now, I enjoy whizzing down a mountain (almost) as much as the next person, but what I REALLY enjoy is the après-ski atmosphere, which was plentiful over the 6-day trip.

Organized by Carl Hardie, president of the MBA Outdoors Club, we were able to buy 5- or 3-day passes for Park City and Canyons Resort, and both mountains were less than a 10-minute drive from our condos. Skiers and snowboarders of all talent levels were welcome and encouraged to attend. It was impressive to watch my friends from India, Pakistan, and America who had never been to a ski resort, take lessons and conquer some of the blue (intermediate) runs with me. Equally remarkable were my more advanced colleagues who decided that runs off the ski lifts were not daring enough for them, and decided to hike to untouched powder runs at the summit — personally, that’s a little too much for me … I can’t even conquer double blues!

Taking a break to capture how seriously we take '80s day! It's always the highlight of the trip, especially when it’s 50 degrees and the guys can wear short shorts.

Beyond Skiing

Not only were our days filled with skiing, snowboarding, and even snowmobiling, but our evenings were occupied with group dinners and outings to downtown Park City. As a first-year, it was nice to take advantage of a smaller group to get to know more of the second years who will be leaving us for the real world in 6 short weeks. My fellow first years and I were able to make new connections with second years over free pizza (thanks Outdoors Club!) on the first night and during an Italian buffet on the third evening, along with all of our get-togethers at the bottom of the mountain after a grueling day on the slopes (for me that means approximately 2 hours of skiing).

My boyfriend, Chris (left) and friend Avi (right) with me après-ski. They deserved a break after 5 hours on the slopes!

The highlight of the trip was the annual ‘80s Party at the summit on Thursday, the last full day of skiing for most of us. We all dressed in ‘80s gear, and as you can see from the picture, some took it a bit more seriously than others! Then, we met at the summit restaurant at Park City Resort for lunch, took some action shots, and continued skiing for a few hours until it was time to relax at the Corner Store Bar and Restaurant near the base of the mountain. It was a lot of fun to be a part of a group that takes themes so seriously — we received several comments from other skiers about how jealous they were of our ‘80s apparel and countless envious (or maybe confused?) stares. It was a great way to end a busy yet rewarding Spring Break, even if the snow was beginning to melt.

After going on this trip, I would recommend it to anyone who attends Fuqua. While some might not consider Park City as exotic as a GATE trip to South Africa or South America, it was an awesome way to spend a week of break. I was able to meet more of my classmates and improve my skiing (even if only a little). I can’t wait to see where next year’s club presidents will choose to take us skiing, but in the meantime, I’m going to work on accumulating more ‘80s workout gear so I can win the prize for best costume in 2014!

Professor Joe LeBoeuf

Anyone who has ever had a conversation with Professor Joe LeBoeuf will most certainly walk away with a renewed sense of urgency to become a better leader and leave his/her mark on Fuqua and the world. At least, that’s how I felt after our discussion about how to develop into a “leader of consequence.” A retired Army Colonel with 34 years of military experience, Prof. LeBoeuf helped shape Fuqua’s leadership program into an integral part of the Duke MBA experience and has earned recognition from BusinessWeek, Harvard, and other top-10 business school programs. Leadership development is a part of Fuqua’s fabric and leadership lessons are woven into the entire culture here — a culture that is continually supported and shaped by many faculty, staff, alumni, and current students. For me, though, it was Prof. LeBoeuf who really opened my eyes to the leadership potential that I have. His philosophy of making our time at Fuqua a transformational, rather than simply a transactional, two-year experience permeates all facets of Fuqua’s Leadership Development Program and ensures that students have the opportunity to hone their leadership skills in preparation for the “real world.”

Experienced Leader Gives Back

Prof. LeBoeuf attended West Point for undergrad and then went into active service from 1974 – 2003, serving in various operational roles, in Germany and the United States. He then earned a master’s in Engineering Psychology from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1985, and returned to his original alma mater as an assistant professor, starting his career as a soldier and scholar. He returned to Ft. Carson, Colorado, for a two year operational assignment with the 4^th Infantry Division before being selected by the Army to pursue a Ph.D. in Industrial — Organizational Psychology. With that degree, he returned to West Point in 1994, as a member of the permanent faculty as an Academy Professor to teach within the Behavioral Science and Leadership Department, where he served at the Deputy Department Head, a role which allowed him to educate, develop and train cadets into leaders of competence and character.

After his retirement from the Army in 2003, Prof. LeBoeuf joined Fuqua’s faculty in 2004. He teaches management and leadership courses and serves as a scholar in the Fuqua/Coach K Center on Leadership and Ethics (COLE). One of his roles with COLE is supervising the COLE Leadership Fellows Program, and developing other enhanced leadership programming. He is Faculty Director of Consequential Leadership II, an intense leadership developmental experience for all Daytime students. Prof. LeBoeuf also consults through Duke Corporate Education and with Praevius, Inc. and works with the Center for Army Professionalism and Ethics (CAPE), on an Army leadership and character transformation project — bringing his civilian and military expertise together to continually educate military leaders.

Building Leaders of Consequence Isn’t Easy

As one of the few faculty members at Fuqua with over 30 years of leadership experience outside the realm of academia, Prof. LeBoeuf understands the challenges of asking MBA students to confront our weaknesses and improve upon them to become better leaders. The way he helps structure Fuqua’s leadership development program allows us to take time on our own to fill out and tweak our Personal Development Plan, which details 3 goals we have for our time at Fuqua, whether they are related to leadership, academics, or even fitness. After we capture our initial thoughts, COLE Fellows, overseen by Prof. LeBoeuf, give us feedback and hold us accountable to reaching our goals. As Prof. LeBoeuf told us in an email in August, Fuqua is a “two year gift you give to yourself,” but what we do with this gift is up to us — we have to determine our own goals and priorities, and it helps to have a second-year COLE Fellow invested in our progress.

Prof. LeBoeuf not only oversees the COLE Fellows, who are at the heart of Fuqua’s Leadership Development Program, but he also ensures that the Fellows provide additional leadership opportunities for interested Fuqua students. A rigorous education and training program for the 40 Fellows in the spring includes a two-day retreat, a speech by Duke Men’s Basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski, and a ceremony where Fellows are issued military-style dog tags to commemorate their commitment to the program. After the event, Prof. LeBoeuf empowers all Fellows to explore a leadership path that interests them, and to make related opportunities available to the entire student body. As a result of this challenge, the Leadership Cohort Experience was established, which brings students in contact with industry leaders and CEOs (and even an astronaut!) 3 – 4 times per academic term, beginning in Fall 2. It provides an intimate opportunity to learn about leadership in the “real world” directly from successful professionals.

Opportunities that Matter

Thanks to Prof. LeBoeuf, the students he supports, and the many senior faculty members he works with, Fuqua has become a premier institution for leadership development. Students here have the opportunity to leave a legacy at the school through leadership activities like the COLE Fellows and the Cohort Experience. Without Prof. LeBoeuf’s strong personal belief that receiving your MBA should be about more than just attending classes and getting a degree, this would not be the case, and students would enter the workforce unprepared for leadership challenges that await. We are privileged to have such a robust leadership program here at Fuqua, and I plan on taking advantage of all that it has to offer!

Sitting outside with Caroline Barker before heading to the driving range.

Some prospective students might be under the impression that all we do at Fuqua is attend class, have group meetings, study in the library, and recruit with any and all companies that visit campus. I am here to dispel those nasty rumors, with all the credit going to Fuqua’s Association of Women in Business (AWIB) Club.

One of the advantages of choosing Fuqua is that there is a world-class golf course and driving range across the street at the Washington Duke Inn (there is also a wonderful patio and restaurant if you’re not into golf). In conjunction with the Golf Club, AWIB hosted a women’s-only driving range event on a Friday afternoon right before Fuqua Friday (which is another event that helps to dispel the rumor of all work and no play). Several of my friends and I made the short 10 minute walk from school and found ourselves in front of golf clubs and plenty of range balls.

Kara Castagna driving the ball!

I consider myself a decent golfer (definition: can keep up with the pace of play, even if it means picking up my ball and just riding along for a hole or two), but there were several ladies in attendance who had never touched a golf club before and didn’t know the difference between a pitching wedge and a driver. The great thing about the experience was that several Golf Club members were available to give us tips on our stance, grip, and swing in a completely stress-free environment. We were able to hit as many or as few golf balls as we wanted, and some women actually went from crawling to walking in the proverbial golf sense! It was a great afternoon to be outside and get a little bit of exercise, as you can see from the pictures, especially after being cooped up in class and recruiting events all week.

Lots of Activity Options

If golfing isn’t your sport of choice, no worries! A few weeks ago, AWIB sponsored a 5K run/walk supporting the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. It was open to all students and was also immediately preceding Fuqua Friday. Over 30 students came out to raise $500 for breast cancer research in their pink shirts, headbands, shorts, and socks. The event was held across the street at the Al Buhler Trail, which is a tree-lined loop around the Washington Duke golf course — yet another advantage of going to school in Durham. Whether people ran or walked, they all enjoyed a beautiful fall day and contributing to something bigger than themselves, which is something we try to do as a broader Fuqua community.

Sarah Palestine and Emily White after finishing the 5k run!

Other activities for Fuqua students completely unrelated to recruiting or case studies involve: yoga every Tuesday, doubles tennis tournaments, intramural soccer and rugby, beer brewing classes, Fuqua Drag Show, Duke basketball and football, and rafting trips. If you’re a believer of the work hard, play hard philosophy, Fuqua is the right place for you. The range of clubs and interests within the student body is more diverse than anything I’ve ever encountered before, and never leaves a dull moment during the week. (And there is plenty of accounting and statistics to learn in your spare time!)

Duke’s Armed Forces Association (DAFA) is hosting its first Veterans’ Day Symposium for Military Applicants. The event will start on the evening of Thursday, Nov. 8, but the majority of events will be on Friday, Nov. 9 (register to attend by Nov. 5). The symposium will be filled with class visits, admissions interviews, and a panel of alumni who have successfully made the transition from the military to the civilian world. Some events are also open to family members. If you’re like me and have trouble translating your resume into plain English, then the symposium will be especially helpful. There will information sessions with current veterans, from all four branches, who will look at your resume and help to “de-militarize” it.

Not only will Thursday’s networking session and Friday’s panel give you a good feel of what business school is really like for those coming from the service, but it will also be followed by a Veterans Day-themed Fuqua Friday, replete with an obstacle course! Fuqua Fridays are essentially a big party, celebrating the end of the week, and they’re usually sponsored by a student club. It’s a place where students unwind and network, so you’ll meet Fuqua students from all industries, not just the military, while enjoying some delicious food in a relaxing atmosphere.

The symposium will be a great opportunity to learn first-hand what Fuqua is all about, and how our veteran’s network is dedicated to helping us find the best possible jobs after school. Everyone from professors to admissions officers are willing to go above and beyond to help us, and all students, to succeed. For example, one of our professors has connected several of us to directors at JP Morgan and Bank of America. Having a personal introduction makes networking and interviewing more enjoyable and less stressful (at least in my short 6-week experience!). Fuqua’s former veterans have been incredibly successful — securing internships and full-time job offers from companies like Goldman Sachs, Intel, and Wal-Mart. Whatever industry you’re interested in, there is bound to be a Fuqua veteran who has advice and contacts that will come in handy. Learn more about some of my classmates who also have military experience — you’ll have the opportunity to meet these students during the symposium.

As a former Naval Officer, I continue to be impressed by not only how much Fuqua supports our veteran community, but also by how assimilated we are within the larger Fuqua community. While my classmates are duly impressed with my military service and pirate-hunting tales from Somalia, they also want to learn about me as a person and what I want to do with the rest of my life. At Fuqua, being a veteran can be as definitive as you want it to be, which is extremely refreshing after living the Navy lifestyle 24/7 during multiple deployments.

Some people have asked me about the transition from the Navy to the classroom, and I have a few thoughts:

Pros

1. You get to sleep in your own bed every night.
2. Working on a Saturday is not mandatory.
3. Guys can grow beards and ladies can wear their hair down.
4. You can wear whatever you want (as long as you don’t wear workout gear to an interview that’s not with Nike).
5. No mandatory physical fitness tests.
6. You don’t have to sleep in a bunk bed.
7. You don’t have to take leave to go on a weekend trip to Ashville.
8. You get to watch Duke basketball!
9. No more steel-toed boots.
10. Time in the classroom is spent more on case studies than PowerPoints.

Cons

1. Transitioning back into “school mode” isn’t as easy as it sounds, but everyone struggles with this to some degree or another.
2. You can’t drive a billion-dollar warship in Durham.
3. Homework.
4. No more military discounts.
5. There is no recreating the relationship you have with your division or platoon, but your friends at Fuqua will be with you for a lifetime.

For me, the pros outweigh the cons, but my experience in the military is an irreplaceable part of my life, as Fuqua will be in a year and a half. If you have any questions or concerns about the application process or B-School in general, please consider joining us for the Veterans’ Day Symposium! To attend, please register online by Monday, Nov. 5. Hope to see you on campus soon!

While in the Navy, trying to find submarines in the Pacific Ocean and Gulf of Oman. I'm talking to my sonar team on the radio.

I don’t like teams. I dislike coordination, collaboration, and compilation. It all takes so much work, and I can do just as well by myself … Well, at least that’s what I thought before coming to Fuqua.

After spending four years in the Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer (responsibilities included: ship driver, leader of Sailors, general problem-solver), I realized that I wanted to go to business school to learn the quantitative skills that, coupled with my leadership experience, would help me succeed in the business world. At the time, I didn’t really think about how teamwork fit into business transactions in the “real world.” While I was applying to business school, I just knew that I had to get into and out of a good program and then get hired — that was the end goal. The idea that working in teams and being in business was synonymous did not cross my mind.

From Flying Solo to Becoming a Team Player

While trying to decide which school to attend, I tried to find a way to differentiate amongst several programs. With Fuqua, the one factor that resonated with me was how much importance is placed on teamwork. I had to be honest with myself (which is a bit of a struggle sometimes), but I knew that there was something special and beneficial about working with a diverse group of talented people. While I was in the Navy, I was in charge of countless teams and divisions, but it was rare that I had to work as a subordinate or peer within the team framework. My leadership skills were mostly derived from direct authority. I knew I was lacking in the critical areas of interpersonal relationships and influence — I didn’t know how to convince people to do something, without having the authority to order them to complete a task. Learning that Fuqua places a heavy emphasis on teamwork, right from day one, and that my success or failure here would largely result from my ability to mesh with my team was a bit intimidating. But I knew that if I wanted to improve my communication skills, there was no better place for me.

With my teammates during Team Challenge Day.

So, Fuqua it was, and once I arrived in Durham, I realized that “Team Fuqua” really wasn’t lip-service or a clever slogan that the Admissions Office throws out to try to differentiate the school from other top-tier programs. I actually still feel a bit corny buying into the hype, but from my small class team to my entire Section 2 group, I can definitively say that you can’t get through a week at Fuqua and not benefit from a teammate or classmate. I’ve only been at school for two months, but I have already lost count of incidents where a peer has assisted me in one way, shape, or form. My favorite example is when someone placed my Duke Card (which is my school ID) on the trunk of my car. I’m a bit of an airhead when it comes to keeping track of trivial things, such as credit cards, driver’s licenses, and apparently, Duke Cards. Luckily, an anonymous classmate found my card and knew to return it to my car. What a lifesaver! Other examples include: sharing Sour Patch Kids in class, tutoring each other for a statistics quiz, and holding mock interview sessions to prepare for internship interviews. The list will continue to grow in the months ahead, I can assure you.

And talk about variety! My small team has more diversity within it than I had within my entire friend group in San Diego. My teammates include a South Korean woman with a 6-month-old son; a student from Monterrey, Mexico; a former Navy contractor from New Jersey; a consultant from LA; and a business analyst from Shanghai, China. Being around all of these incredibly talented individuals makes me realize how big the world really is and how important diversity is for a team. Don’t get me wrong: I studied abroad in Argentina for 6 months during college and have been to 45 countries either with the Navy or with my family. But this is the first time when I’ve had to work with people from different backgrounds on a consistent basis for a prolonged period of time. Instead of the headaches and coordination problems I thought it would lead to, being thrust into such an unknown environment has given me a new appreciation for the sacrifices international students make to come to Durham. Not to mention, the enthusiasm they have for being able to study in America is contagious!

Best Place for Personal Growth

In short, Fuqua was the obvious best fit for me from the beginning of my MBA search. I just had to take the time to think about what skills I needed to develop in order to grow into the kind of well-rounded business woman I want to be. Sometimes it’s painful to step outside of your comfort zone and surround yourself with things that are uncomfortable, but trust me, you’ll be a better person for it. So, for those of you who are considering Fuqua, enjoy the process of applying, and make sure to reflect on all of your preconceived assumptions about yourself and others! And keep track of your Duke Card.